Lot Essay
Persiphaé was the daughter of Helios and the wife of Minos the King of Crete. Poseidon gave Minos a magnificent sacrificial bull that the King was to slaughter in his honor. Minos did not comply with Poseidon's wish. This act greatly angered the God, who to punish Minos had his wife fall madly in love with the bull. Pasiphé was so enamored by the beast that in order to satisfy her lust, she had Daedalus, the King's craftsman, build a wooden cow in which she could conceal herself. The copy was so realistic that the bull approached it and mated with Persiphaé. This abnormal union produced a hybrid offspring, half-man and half-bull, known as the Minotaur. Minos, so repulsed by the beast, commissioned Daedalus to build a labyrinth to house the creature.
Our watercolor is the direct source for the large unfinished painting (Musée Gustave Moreau, no. 74) (P.L. Mathieu, Tout l'Oeuvre de Gustave Moreau, Paris, 1991, number 149 (illustrated)) In our work, Moreau has chosen the moment when Persiphaé, waits for the bull. She is in the presence of Dedalus, who is seated in front of the bogus heffer he created for this monstrous coupling.
The theme of Pasiphaé provided inspiration for Moreau earlier in his career, given that the first watercolor dates from 1860, an epoch when the artist was virtually unknown.
Our work is dedicated to the writer and photographer, who was very famous during his day. He was a member of the Académie Française, and a very close friend of Gustave Flaubert. Du Camp admired Moreaus work from the moment he saw them, and in appreciation gave Moreau copies of most of his books, which are today housed in the artist's library at the Musée Gustave Moreau. Moreau was also a frequent dinner guest in Du Camp's home. As a gesture of friendship, Moreau gave Du Camp the watercolor of Persiphaé in 1867. Du Camp recommended Moreau's work to his collegues and friends, such as the young Gustave Duruflé, who became a passionate collector of his works (see Dessins de Maitres Anciens et du XIXème siècle, Christie's, Monaco, June 30, 1995, no. 148 and 149).
Du Camp also supported Moreau in his nomination to the Académie des Beaux Arts.
The following quote by Moreau was written at the end of his life as a passionate commentary on his painting of Persiphaé in the Musée Gustave Courbet. It also could be applied to our watercolor:
"Pâles et grandes figures, terribles, solitaires, sombres et désolées, fatales amantes, mystérieuses condamnées aux hontes titaniques. Que deviendrez-vous? Quelles destinées seront les vôtres? Où pourront se cacher vos formidables amours? Quelles terreurs, quelles pitiés vous inspirez, quelles tristesses immenses et stupéfiées vous éveillez chez l'Etre humain appelé a contempler tant de honte, d'horreur, de crimes et d'infortune" (G. Moreau, l'Assembleur de rêves. Ecrits complets de Gustave Moreau, Fontfroide, Fata Morgana, 1984).
We are grateful to Pierre-Louis Mathieu for his assistance in preparing this catalogue entry.
Our watercolor is the direct source for the large unfinished painting (Musée Gustave Moreau, no. 74) (P.L. Mathieu, Tout l'Oeuvre de Gustave Moreau, Paris, 1991, number 149 (illustrated)) In our work, Moreau has chosen the moment when Persiphaé, waits for the bull. She is in the presence of Dedalus, who is seated in front of the bogus heffer he created for this monstrous coupling.
The theme of Pasiphaé provided inspiration for Moreau earlier in his career, given that the first watercolor dates from 1860, an epoch when the artist was virtually unknown.
Our work is dedicated to the writer and photographer, who was very famous during his day. He was a member of the Académie Française, and a very close friend of Gustave Flaubert. Du Camp admired Moreaus work from the moment he saw them, and in appreciation gave Moreau copies of most of his books, which are today housed in the artist's library at the Musée Gustave Moreau. Moreau was also a frequent dinner guest in Du Camp's home. As a gesture of friendship, Moreau gave Du Camp the watercolor of Persiphaé in 1867. Du Camp recommended Moreau's work to his collegues and friends, such as the young Gustave Duruflé, who became a passionate collector of his works (see Dessins de Maitres Anciens et du XIXème siècle, Christie's, Monaco, June 30, 1995, no. 148 and 149).
Du Camp also supported Moreau in his nomination to the Académie des Beaux Arts.
The following quote by Moreau was written at the end of his life as a passionate commentary on his painting of Persiphaé in the Musée Gustave Courbet. It also could be applied to our watercolor:
"Pâles et grandes figures, terribles, solitaires, sombres et désolées, fatales amantes, mystérieuses condamnées aux hontes titaniques. Que deviendrez-vous? Quelles destinées seront les vôtres? Où pourront se cacher vos formidables amours? Quelles terreurs, quelles pitiés vous inspirez, quelles tristesses immenses et stupéfiées vous éveillez chez l'Etre humain appelé a contempler tant de honte, d'horreur, de crimes et d'infortune" (G. Moreau, l'Assembleur de rêves. Ecrits complets de Gustave Moreau, Fontfroide, Fata Morgana, 1984).
We are grateful to Pierre-Louis Mathieu for his assistance in preparing this catalogue entry.